Ultrasonic atomizer with quick-connect mechanism

ABSTRACT

An apparatus for applying a coating to a substrate includes a base, an applicator, and a quick-connect connector. The base includes a fluid conduit. The applicator includes at least one actuator and an array of nozzle plates. Each nozzle plate defines at least one aperture. The at least one actuator is configured to oscillate the nozzle plates to eject fluid from the apertures. The quick-connect connector couples the fluid conduit to the applicator for fluid communication therebetween.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to provisional application 62/624,013filed on Jan. 30, 2018. The disclosure of the above application isincorporated herein by reference.

FIELD

The present disclosure relates to high volume coating equipment and morespecifically an atomizer with a nozzle connection device.

BACKGROUND

The statements in this section merely provide background informationrelated to the present disclosure and may not constitute prior art.

Coating automotive vehicles (e.g., vehicle frames, bodies, panels, etc.)with coatings (e.g., primer, basecoat, clearcoat, etc.) in a high-volumeproduction environment involves substantial capital cost, not only forapplication and control of the coating, but also for equipment tocapture overspray. The overspray can be up to 40% of the coating thatexits an applicator, or in other words, up to 40% of the coating that ispurchased and applied is wasted (i.e. the transfer efficiency is ˜60%).Equipment that captures overspray involves significant capital expenseswhen a paint shop is constructed, including large air handling systemsto carry overspray down through a paint booth, construction of acontinuous stream of water that flows under a floor of the paint boothto capture the overspray, filtration systems, and abatement, amongothers. In addition, costs to operate the equipment is high because air(flowing at greater than 200,000 cubic feet per minute) that flowsthrough the paint booths must be conditioned, the flow of water must bemaintained, compressed air must be supplied, and complex electrostaticsare employed to improve transfer efficiency.

With known production equipment, the liquid coating is atomized by anozzle that includes a rotating bell, which is essentially a rotatingdisk or bowl that spins at about 20,000-80,000 revolutions per minute.The liquid is typically ejected from an annular slot on a face of therotating disk and is propelled towards the edges of the bell viacentrifugal force. The liquid then forms ligaments and then droplets atthe edges of the bell. Although this equipment works for its intendedpurpose, various issues arise as a result of its design. First, themomentum of the liquid coating is mostly lateral, meaning it is movingin a direction parallel to the vehicle rather than towards the vehicle.To compensate for this movement, shaping air is applied that redirectsthe liquid droplets towards the vehicle. In addition, electrostatics areused to steer the droplets towards the vehicle. The droplets have afairly wide size distribution, which can cause appearance issues.Furthermore, changing out a rotating bell atomizer nozzle, such as forreplacement or cleaning, requires considerable time to ensure the bellis properly balanced.

The present disclosure addresses these issues associated withtraditional high-volume production paint booth operations.

SUMMARY

This section provides a general summary of the disclosure and is not acomprehensive disclosure of its full scope or all of its features.

In one form, an apparatus for applying a coating to a substrate includesa base, an applicator, and a quick-connect connector. The base includesa fluid conduit. The applicator includes at least one actuator and anarray of nozzle plates. Each nozzle plate defines at least one aperture.The at least one actuator is configured to oscillate the nozzle platesto eject fluid from the apertures. The quick-connect connector couplesthe fluid conduit to the applicator for fluid communicationtherebetween. In a variety of alternate forms of the present disclosure:the at least one actuator is at least one piezoelectric actuator; the atleast one actuator includes a plurality of actuators, each actuatorconfigured to oscillate a corresponding one of the nozzle plates; theapparatus further includes a robotic arm supporting the base; eachnozzle plate includes a plurality of the apertures; the applicatorincludes an array body supporting the nozzle plates, wherein thequick-connect connector is one quick-connect connector of a plurality ofquick-connect connectors, each quick-connect connector configured tocouple a corresponding one of the nozzle plates to the nozzle body; theapplicator includes an array body supporting the nozzle plates, whereinthe quick-connect connector couples the array body to the base; theapparatus further includes a control module in electrical communicationwith the at least one actuator; the applicator defines at least onereservoir; the at least one reservoir includes a plurality ofreservoirs, each reservoir being at least partially defined by acorresponding one of the nozzle plates; each reservoir has a volume of 1mL or less; wherein the quick-connect connector includes a first fittingand a second fitting, the first fitting defining a circumferentialgroove and a nose, the second fitting including a retaining memberconfigured to be received in the groove and movable between a lockedposition and an unlocked position, wherein when in the locked position,the retaining member is disposed within the groove and engages ashoulder of the groove to inhibit axial movement of the first fittingrelative to the second fitting, wherein when in the unlocked position,the first and second fittings are axially movable relative to eachother, wherein one of the first fitting or the second fitting is fixedlycoupled to the base and the other one of the first fitting or the secondfitting is fixedly coupled to the applicator; the quick-connectconnector includes an electrical connection between the base and theapplicator configured to transmit electrical signals from the base tothe at least one actuator.

In another form, an apparatus for applying a coating to a substrateincludes a base, an applicator, and a quick-connect connector. Theapplicator includes an actuator and a nozzle plate defining at least oneaperture. The actuator is configured to oscillate the nozzle plate toeject fluid from the at least one aperture. The quick-connect connectorcouples the applicator to the base for fluid communication andelectrical communication therebetween. In a variety of alternate formsof the present disclosure: the actuator is a piezoelectric actuator; theapplicator comprises a plurality of the actuators and a plurality of thenozzle plates, each actuator being configured to oscillate acorresponding one of the nozzle plates; the applicator includes an arraybody supporting the nozzle plates, wherein the quick-connect connectoris one quick-connect connector of a plurality of quick-connectconnectors, each quick-connect connector configured to couple acorresponding one of the nozzle plates to the nozzle body; theapplicator includes an array body supporting the nozzle plates, whereinthe quick-connect connector couples the array body to the base; theapparatus further including a robotic arm supporting the base; thenozzle plate includes a plurality of the apertures.

Further areas of applicability will become apparent from the descriptionprovided herein. It should be understood that the description andspecific examples are intended for purposes of illustration only and arenot intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.

DRAWINGS

In order that the disclosure may be well understood, there will now bedescribed various forms thereof, given by way of example, referencebeing made to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 schematically depicts a booth for automated coating of a vehicleaccording to the teachings of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 schematically depicts a planar view of an applicator having anarray of micro-applicators according to the teachings of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 3 schematically depicts a portion of the applicator of FIG. 2,illustrating one of the micro-applicators;

FIG. 4 schematically depicts a side cross-sectional view of section 4-4in FIG. 3, illustrating a quick-connect nozzle according to theteachings of the present disclosure;

FIG. 5 schematically depicts an exploded side cross-sectional view ofthe quick-connect nozzle of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 schematically depicts a side cross-sectional view of anapplicator of a second construction having a quick-connect nozzle withan array of micro-applicators according to the teachings of the presentdisclosure; and

FIG. 7 schematically depicts a side cross-sectional view of anapplicator of a third construction having a quick-connect nozzle with anarray of micro-applicators according to the teachings of the presentdisclosure.

The drawings described herein are for illustration purposes only and arenot intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure in any way.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following description is merely exemplary in nature and is notintended to limit the present disclosure, application, or uses. Itshould be understood that throughout the drawings, correspondingreference numerals indicate like or corresponding parts and features.Examples are provided to fully convey the scope of the disclosure tothose who are skilled in the art. Numerous specific details are setforth such as types of specific components, devices, and methods, toprovide a thorough understanding of variations of the presentdisclosure. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art thatspecific details need not be employed and that the examples providedherein, may include alternative embodiments and are not intended tolimit the scope of the disclosure. In some examples, well-knownprocesses, well-known device structures, and well-known technologies arenot described in detail.

The present disclosure provides a variety of devices, methods, andsystems for controlling the application of paint to automotive vehiclesin a high production environment, which reduce overspray and increasetransfer efficiency of the paint. It should be understood that thereference to automotive vehicles is merely exemplary and that otherobjects that are painted, such as industrial equipment and appliances,among others, may also be painted in accordance with the teachings ofthe present disclosure. Further, the use of “paint” or “painting” shouldnot be construed as limiting the present disclosure, and thus othermaterials such as coatings, primers, sealants, cleaning solvents, amongothers, are to be understood as falling within the scope of the presentdisclosure.

Generally, the teachings of the present disclosure are based on adroplet spray generation device in which a perforate membrane is drivenby a piezoelectric transducer. This device and variations thereof aredescribed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,394,363, 7,550,897, 7,977,849, 8,317,299,8,191,982, 9,156,049, 7,976,135, 9,452,442, and U.S. PublishedApplication Nos. 2014/0110500, 2016/0228902, and 2016/0158789, which areincorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

Referring now to FIG. 1, a paint spray system 2 for painting a part Pusing a robotic arm 4 is schematically depicted. The robotic arm 4 iscoupled to at least one material applicator 10 and a rack 5. A materialsource 8 (e.g., a paint source) is included and includes at least onematerial M (materials M₁, M₂, M₃, . . . M_(n) shown in FIG. 1; alsoreferred to herein simply as “material M”). In some aspects of thepresent disclosure the at least one material M includes different paintmaterials, different adhesive materials, different sealant materials,and the like. The arm 4 moves according to xyz coordinates with respectto rack 4 such that the material applicator 10 moves across a surface(not labeled) of the part P. Also, a power source 6 is configured tosupply power to arm 4 and rack 5. Arm 4 and rack 5 are configured tosupply material M from the material source 8 to the material applicator10 such that a coating is applied to the surface of the part P.

Referring to FIG. 2 a material applicator 10 or atomizer according tothe teachings of the present disclosure is schematically shown. In oneform of the present disclosure, the material applicator 10 includes anarray body 100 or nozzle with an applicator array 102 including aplurality of micro-applicators 110 or sub-nozzles. In some aspects ofthe present disclosure, the array body 100 with the applicator array 102is positioned on a base 140. In one configuration, the base 140 issupported at the end of the articulating robotic arm 4 (FIG. 1). Inanother configuration, the base 140 is supported by a spray bar (notshown) which can be stationary or can move in one, two, or threedimensions relative to a substrate S (shown in FIG. 4). Each of themicro-applicators 110 includes a plurality of apertures 112 throughwhich a material M (FIG. 4) is ejected such that atomized droplets 3(FIG. 4) of the material is provided. As described above, the material M(FIG. 4) is generally a liquid material (e.g., primer, basecoat,clearcoat, etc.) but may optionally include interspersed solids, such asmetallic flecks or other particles to provide a particular aestheticlook. The micro-applicators 110 can be arranged in any arrangement, suchas a regular or an irregular pattern across the array body 100.

Referring to FIGS. 3 and 4, each of the micro-applicators 110 includes anozzle body 116, a micro-applicator plate 114, and an actuator 120. Eachmicro-applicator plate 114 defines a plurality of the apertures 112extending through the micro-applicator plate 114. The actuator 120 canbe a transducer such as a piezoelectric material. The micro-applicatorplate 114 is in mechanical communication with the actuator 120 such thatactivation of the actuator 120 (e.g., providing electrical power to theactuator 120) vibrates or oscillates the micro-applicator plate 114 asschematically depicted by the horizontal (z-direction) double-headedarrows in FIG. 4.

In the example provided, the nozzle body 116 is a generally cylindricalbody and includes a male quick-connect fitting 410 and the array body100 includes a female quick-connect fitting 414 configured to releasablymate with the male quick-connect fitting 410. In an alternativeconfiguration, not specifically shown, the array body 100 includes amale quick-connect fitting and the nozzle body 116 includes a femalequick-connect fitting.

Referring to FIG. 5, the male quick-connect fitting 410 includes alocking groove 418 and a first sealing surface 422 that extendscircumferentially about the nozzle body 116. The sealing surface 422 isconfigured to contact and seal with a mating sealing surface 430disposed about an interior of the female quick-connect fitting 414. Thefemale quick-connect fitting 414 includes a generally cylindrical body432 and plurality of locking balls 434 that are circumferentially spacedabout the female quick-connect fitting 414 and configured to moveradially between a locked position (shown) and an unlocked positionwithin bores 436 that extend radially through the cylindrical body 432.

In the locked position, the balls 434 extend radially inward a greaterextent than when in the unlocked position and can be captured within thegroove 418 to engage a shoulder of the groove 418 to prevent axialwithdrawal of the male quick-connect fitting 410. A collar 438 of thefemale quick-connect fitting 414 is movable in the axial direction topermit or prevent the balls 434 from moving between the locked positionand the unlocked position, depending on the axial position of the collar438. In the example provided, a spring 442 biases the collar 438 towardthe locked position and a snap ring 446 maintains the collar 438 on the.While one specific type of quick-connect fitting is illustrated, othertypes can be used (e.g., bayonet-type).

Referring to FIGS. 4 and 5, the array body 100 includes a material inlet136 corresponding to each micro-applicator 110. The array body 100includes a back wall 131 such that a reservoir 134 for containing thematerial M is provided between the back wall 131 and themicro-applicator plate 114. In the example provided, the back wall 131,a portion of the nozzle body 116 and the side of the micro-applicatorplate 114 that faces the back wall 131 cooperate to define the reservoir134. The inlet 136 is in fluid communication with the reservoir 134 suchthat the material M flows through the inlet 136 and into the reservoir134. In the example provided, the actuator 120 is positioned between themicro-applicator plate 114 and the nozzle body 116 so that the nozzlebody 116 supports the actuator 120 and the actuator 120 supports themicro-applicator plate 114. For example, the actuator 120 may bepositioned between an outer edge surface 115 of the micro-applicatorplate 114 and an inner surface 133 of the nozzle body 116. In oneconfiguration, the actuator 120 is an annular shape disposed about themicro-applicator plate 114. In another configuration, not specificallyshown, the actuator 120 can be integrally formed with themicro-applicator plate 114 such that supplying power to themicro-applicator plate 114 oscillates the plate 114.

In the example provided, a control module 164 is in electriccommunication with the actuator 120 to provide power to and controloperation of the actuator 120. In the example provided, an electricalconnection is made through electrical contacts on the male and femalequick-connect fittings 410, 414, though other configurations can beused.

Still referring to FIG. 4, the material M is supplied to the reservoir134 at a very low pressure or no pressure, such that surface tension ofthe material M resists the material M from flowing through the apertures112 of the micro-applicator plate 114 unless the actuator 120 isactivated and oscillates. That is, when the actuator 120 is activatedand vibrates, the material M is ejected through and/or from theplurality of apertures 112 to provide a stream 5 of atomized droplets 3.The stream 5 of atomized droplets 3 propagates generally parallel to amicro-applicator axis 2′ and forms a coating C on a surface s′ of thesubstrate S. The substrate S can be any suitable workpiece such as avehicle part, frame, or body for example. As schematically depicted inFIG. 4, the atomized droplets 3 have a narrow droplet size distribution(e.g., average droplet diameter).

Referring to FIG. 6, a cross section of a material applicator 10′ of asecond construction is illustrated. The material applicator 10′ issimilar to the material applicator 10 (FIGS. 1-5) except as otherwiseshown or described herein. Features denoted with primed referencenumerals are similar to the features shown and described in FIGS. 1-5with similar, but non-primed reference numerals and only differences aredescribed herein.

The array body 100′ includes a male quick-connect fitting 410′configured to releasably connect to a mating female quick-connectfitting 414′ on the base 140′. In the example provided, an electricalconnection or connections are formed between contacts on the male andfemale quick-connect fittings 410′, 414′, to electrically connect thecontrol module 164′ to the actuators of the individual micro-applicators110′. While the material M is illustrated as being provided to all ofthe micro-applicators 110′ from a common inlet 136′, eachmicro-applicator 110′ can receive material M from individual inlets (notshown) though the male and female quick-connect fittings 410′, 414′. Themicro-applicators 110′ can be non-removable relative to the array body100′, or can each be removably coupled to the array body 100′ as shownand described above with reference to FIGS. 1-5.

Referring to FIG. 7, a cross section of a material applicator 10″ of asecond construction is illustrated. The material applicator 10″ issimilar to the material applicator 10 (FIGS. 1-5) and 10′ (FIG. 6)except as otherwise shown or described herein. Features denoted withdouble primed reference numerals are similar to the features shown anddescribed in FIGS. 1-5 with similar, but non-primed reference numeralsor FIG. 6 with similar, but primed reference numerals, and onlydifferences are described herein.

The array body 100″ includes a plurality of male quick-connect fittings410″ configured to releasably connect to corresponding mating femalequick-connect fittings 414″ on the base 140″. In the example provided,the material M flows from the base 140″ to the individualmicro-applicators 110″ via corresponding inlets 136″ and the material Min each micro-applicator 110″ remains separate from the material M inthe other micro-applicators 110″. While the material M is illustrated asbeing provided to all of the micro-applicators 110″ from correspondinginlets 136″, each micro-applicator 110′ can receive a different material(e.g., M1-Mn shown in FIG. 1). The individual micro-applicators 110″ canbe non-removable relative to the array body 100″, or can each beremovably coupled to the array body 100″ as shown and described abovewith reference to FIGS. 1-5.

In the example provided, an electrical connection is formed betweencontacts on the male and female quick-connect fittings 410″, 414″, toelectrically connect the control module 164″ to the actuators 120″ ofthe individual micro-applicators 110″. Alternatively, a separateelectrical connector (not shown) can connect the control module 164″ tothe array body 100″ to provide the electrical connection to theactuators 120″.

As used herein, the phrase at least one of A, B, and C should beconstrued to mean a logical (A OR B OR C), using a non-exclusive logicalOR, and should not be construed to mean “at least one of A, at least oneof B, and at least one of C.

Unless otherwise expressly indicated, all numerical values indicatingmechanical/thermal properties, compositional percentages, dimensionsand/or tolerances, or other characteristics are to be understood asmodified by the word “about” or “approximately” in describing the scopeof the present disclosure. This modification is desired for variousreasons including industrial practice, manufacturing technology, andtesting capability.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particularexample forms only and is not intended to be limiting. The singularforms “a,” “an,” and “the” may be intended to include the plural formsas well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. The terms“including,” and “having,” are inclusive and therefore specify thepresence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements,and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of oneor more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements,components, and/or groups thereof. The method steps, processes, andoperations described herein are not to be construed as necessarilyrequiring their performance in the particular order discussed orillustrated, unless specifically identified as an order of performance.It is also to be understood that additional or alternative steps may beemployed.

The description of the disclosure is merely exemplary in nature and,thus, examples that do not depart from the substance of the disclosureare intended to be within the scope of the disclosure. Such examples arenot to be regarded as a departure from the spirit and scope of thedisclosure. The broad teachings of the disclosure can be implemented ina variety of forms. Therefore, while this disclosure includes particularexamples, the true scope of the disclosure should not be so limitedsince other modifications will become apparent upon a study of thedrawings, the specification, and the following claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. An apparatus for applying a coating to a substrate, the apparatus comprising: a base including a fluid conduit; an applicator including at least one actuator and an array of nozzle plates, each nozzle plate defining at least one aperture, the at least one actuator configured to oscillate the nozzle plates to eject fluid from the apertures; and a quick-connect connector that couples the fluid conduit to the applicator for fluid communication therebetween.
 2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one actuator is at least one piezoelectric actuator.
 3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one actuator includes a plurality of actuators, each actuator configured to oscillate a corresponding one of the nozzle plates.
 4. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a robotic arm supporting the base.
 5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein each nozzle plate includes a plurality of the apertures.
 6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the applicator includes an array body supporting the nozzle plates, wherein the quick-connect connector is one quick-connect connector of a plurality of quick-connect connectors, each quick-connect connector configured to couple a corresponding one of the nozzle plates to the nozzle body.
 7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the applicator includes an array body supporting the nozzle plates, wherein the quick-connect connector couples the array body to the base.
 8. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a control module in electrical communication with the at least one actuator.
 9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the applicator defines at least one reservoir.
 10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the at least one reservoir includes a plurality of reservoirs, each reservoir being at least partially defined by a corresponding one of the nozzle plates.
 11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein each reservoir has a volume of 1 mL or less.
 12. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the quick-connect connector includes a first fitting and a second fitting, the first fitting defining a circumferential groove and a nose, the second fitting including a retaining member configured to be received in the groove and movable between a locked position and an unlocked position, wherein when in the locked position, the retaining member is disposed within the groove and engages a shoulder of the groove to inhibit axial movement of the first fitting relative to the second fitting, wherein when in the unlocked position, the first and second fittings are axially movable relative to each other, wherein one of the first fitting or the second fitting is fixedly coupled to the base and the other one of the first fitting or the second fitting is fixedly coupled to the applicator.
 13. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the quick-connect connector includes an electrical connection between the base and the applicator configured to transmit electrical signals from the base to the at least one actuator.
 14. An apparatus for applying a coating to a substrate comprising: a base; an applicator including an actuator and a nozzle plate defining at least one aperture, the actuator being configured to oscillate the nozzle plate to eject fluid from the at least one aperture; and a quick-connect connector that couples the applicator to the base for fluid communication and electrical communication therebetween.
 15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the actuator is a piezoelectric actuator.
 16. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the applicator comprises a plurality of the actuators and a plurality of the nozzle plates, each actuator being configured to oscillate a corresponding one of the nozzle plates.
 17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the applicator includes an array body supporting the nozzle plates, wherein the quick-connect connector is one quick-connect connector of a plurality of quick-connect connectors, each quick-connect connector configured to couple a corresponding one of the nozzle plates to the nozzle body.
 18. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the applicator includes an array body supporting the nozzle plates, wherein the quick-connect connector couples the array body to the base.
 19. The apparatus of claim 14, further comprising a robotic arm supporting the base.
 20. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the nozzle plate includes a plurality of the apertures. 